Currently chief ombudsman of the Office for Legal Complaints, which monitors legal services, following six years as Chief Executive of Shelter.

After university Adam worked in the criminal justice system, first as a probation officer and then as deputy director of the Prison Reform Trust. He worked directly with homeless people in the late 1970s and early 1980s.

In 1994, he joined the Home Office as assistant prisons ombudsman. After three years he returned to the voluntary sector as chief executive of RAPt, the national drugs charity.

Adam is a board member of a number of charities and public bodies, including End Child Poverty, the Prisoners Advice Service, and the Royal Society for the Arts. He is a commissioner on the UK Drugs Policy Commission..